Rapper, Lil Baby and Sports Agent, Rich Paul attend a game between the Phoenix Suns and Los Angeles Lakers during Round 1, Game 4 of the 2021 NBA Playoffs at STAPLES Center in Los Angeles, California. — AFP

American rapper Lil Baby was released from police custody in Paris on Friday after his arrest on suspicion of possessing drugs, and faces a fine, prosecutors said. Lil Baby, 26, whose real name is Dominique Jones, was in a parked car late Thursday that was checked by officers who said they smelled cannabis, according to a police source.

Police found 20 grams of cannabis grass in the vehicle, the Parisien newspaper reported. The rapper was detained along with a friend who was in the car. They were given notice of committing a criminal offence and told they face a fine for using drugs, Paris prosecutors said in a statement to AFP.

This fine must be approved by a judge before it is formally imposed. NBA star James Harden, in the French capital with the rapper for Fashion Week, was in the vicinity and intervened but was not detained. In a video posted on Twitter, Harden, who has played for the Brooklyn Nets since January, can be seen surrounded by several police officers, with one patting him down. Jones, an active supporter of the Black Lives Matter movement, was twice nominated for a Grammy music award in 2020 for "The Bigger Picture." - AFP